Posted
on September 9, 2015
Once
upon a time, in the early 1800s, there was a man named Jacques-Desire
Laval living in France. He had a pretty comfortable life as a
well-educated doctor.
But
then he nearly died in a riding accident. After he recovered, he
decided to change his life – dramatically! He gave up his medical
practice, became a priest, and quite soon became a missionary sent to
the island of Mauritius, which is off the coast of Africa, in the
Indian Ocean.
Now,
I personally am not too happy about a missionary going to a foreign
land to convince people that their native religion is wrong, and the
missionary's religion is correct – but it's always wonderful to
read about people who devote their lives to genuinely helping other
people. And apparently Father Laval did just that.
The
people Laval lived with were poor, uneducated people who had only
recently been liberated from slavery. Laval's learned their language
and participated in every facet of life with the Mauritians, helping
them set up sanitation facilities, teaching them about medicine and
science, and helping them better their agriculture methods. When food
was scarce, Laval fasted. I read that Laval lived very humbly –
even sleeping in a packing crate!
When
Laval died at age 60, on this date in 1864, there was a procession
behind his coffin of more than 30,000 weeping people!
The
anniversary of Father Laval's death is still marked by a festival and
a procession to his tomb. People put candles, flowers, or other signs
of respect on his tomb.
More
on Mauritius...
Mauritius
is sort of a new hot-spot for tourists. When you check out photos of
Mauritius, you can see why!
It's
especially known for its beaches and resorts...
It's
got lovely botanical gardens and an amazing crocodile park...
An
unusual bit of natural beauty is called Seven-Colored Earth. Whoa!
It's got some gorgeous rocky cliff-y coastline.
And
one of the most beautiful waterfalls in the world, Rochester Falls,
is in Mauritius.
Speaking
of waterfalls, the famous “underwater waterfall” is at the
southern end of Mauritius. It's just an illusion that can be seen
from high in the air – but it is beautiful!
Check
out this earlier post about Mauritius.
Also
on this date:
Plan
ahead:
Check
out my Pinterest boards for:
And
here are my Pinterest boards for:
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